HOLLYWOOD, Calif. and BRISTOL, Conn., Oct. 13 — NASCAR fans will have the chance to choose their side in the battle to control the planet when Paramount Home Entertainment and ESPN launch a unique promotional campaign in support of the October 20 debut of TRANSFORMERS: Revenge of the Fallen on DVD and Blu-ray. Paramount Home Entertainment will sponsor not one, but two of the vehicles taking part in the October 17 “NASCAR Banking 500 only from Bank of America Race” at the Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina, a first for any film property.

The cars will be driven by rising star and 2008 Daytona 500 winner Ryan Newman and 4-time Sprint Cup Series Jeff Gordon. Newman’s car, uniform and pit crew all will be branded with images of OPTIMUS PRIME, the heroic leader of the peace-loving AUTOBOTS. Gordon’s car, uniform and crew will sport graphics of MEGATRON, the malevolent leader of the DECEPTICONS. Michael Bay, the director of the TRANSFORMERS megahits, will be the official pace car driver for the 50th running of the NASCAR Banking 500 only from Bank of America at Lowe’s Motor Speedway on Saturday night, Oct. 17. The race will air on ABC at 7 p.m. ET.

BURBANK, Calif. — On October 13, 2009 Walt Disney Records releases a two-disc retrospective collection of music by award-winning songwriting team, Robert Sherman and Richard Sherman. Hired by Walt Disney himself as his first and only staff songwriters, the Sherman Brothers music has been an important part of motion pictures, theme park attractions, television productions, records, compact discs, and Broadway shows – entertaining millions of people all over the world.

The two-disc set includes 59 songs highlighting the Sherman Brothers’ incredibly prolific Disney years – from Annette’s 1959 hit “Tall Paul” to their work from The Tigger Movie in 2000. Newly restored with the latest digital technology, this collection features not only their landmark hits from Mary Poppins, Winnie the Pooh, The Jungle Book, and “it’s a small world,” but a number of their other classics – many available for the first time on CD.

With an economy in the red, The Disney Store appears to have carte blanche with a blue sky concept in which new and existing Disney Stores will feel less like a store and more like a miniature Walt Disney World. The New York Times recently explored some of the potential of the new retail-less shops as provoked by Apple co-founder and Disney board member Steve Jobs.

At a proposed cost of nearly $1M per store for the makeover, innovations include embedded chips in products that invoke interaction with the store’s environment. A concept that’s not too entirely off given the pending reality of RFID chips being introduced en mass to the retail market for inventory control and quick checkouts.

AGOURA HILLS, Calif. — THQ Inc. (NASDAQ:THQI) today announced that Disney•Pixar’s Cars Race-O-Rama, the company’s third installment in the highly successful Cars video game franchise, has shipped to retail outlets throughout North America across six game systems, including the Wii™ video game system, Nintendo DS™, the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, PlayStation® 2 computer entertainment system and PSP® (PlayStation® Portable) system. Cars Race-O-Rama is now available for the suggested retail prices of $39.99 (Wii, Xbox 360 and PlayStation3 system), $29.99 (PSP and DS) and $19.99 (PlayStation 2). The game is rated E for Everyone.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Mickey Mouse paid a visit to Kansas City this weekend, Walt Disney’s hometown, as he celebrated the unveiling of a traveling art exhibit that pays homage to Walt’s lifelong love of trains. He also unveiled the latest Mickey Mouse-inspired toy train set, Mickey’s Magic Choo Choo, releasing in time for the holidays. Local preschoolers along with Kansas City officials and hundreds of fans saw Mickey off as he kicked off his virtual train tour departing Union Station for Los Angeles, where he will arrive just in time for a viewing party showcasing the upcoming Disney Channel primetime special, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Choo Choo Express airing Sunday, October 25th (7:00-7:45 p.m. ET/PT).

Families and their kids can track Mickey’s travels online at www.YouTube.com/DisneyLiving, where they can now view the debut of “Mickey’s Evolution,” a video retrospective that reminds us why Mickey Mouse is a bona fide global icon. Fans can also follow Mickey’s virtual train tour on www.Twitter.com/DisneyLiving, and on Facebook, search word: Disney Living, as he makes his way to the Travel Town Railroad Museum in Los Angeles.

The Art ExhibitThe exhibit captures the history of Walt’s and Mickey’s love of trains with a nod to life on the railroad in the early 20th century. Introducing visitors to rare animation art, historic photography and some of Walt’s personal train-related artifacts, the gallery tells the story of a simpler time when Mickey and friends traveled by rail and Walt himself was building one-of-a-kind miniature railroads in his backyard for friends and family. Including photographs of Walt riding the “Lilly Belle” or Mickey rushing to catch a train in an early animation sketch from Mr. Mouse Takes A Trip, this unique art collection comprised of nearly two dozen pieces, will be on display at Union Station from October 10-11, 2009; select images will then move to the Travel Town Railroad Museum in Los Angeles, Calif.

In a video message released today, Pixar director Lee Unkrich has announced that the limited double-feature release of Toy Story and Toy Story 2 has been extended beyond October 2, although no specific date was given.

Lee also mentioned that a new, unnamed character in Toy Story 3 will be voiced by Kristen Schaal, who is known primarily for her roles on HBO’s Flight of the Conchords as well as a contributor to The Daily Show. Unkrich also announced that comedian and character actor Blake Clark will be stepping in for the role of Slinky.

With a trip for four to Walt Disney World plus a holiday party for the winning town/village in the United Kingdom, now’s the time for our UK friends to submit their hometown for the opportunity to be dubbed the ‘twinned town’ for Walt Disney World.

For full details and to enter, visit the official site here. Entries are being acceped through November 22.

ANAHEIM, Calif., Oct. 12 — George Kalogridis, a 38-year Disney veteran and former Disneyland executive, has been named president of the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. Kalogridis most recently served as chief operating officer for Disneyland Resort Paris, where he was responsible for leading the operations team and overseeing the highly successful 15th anniversary celebration of the resort.

Kalogridis, 55, will report to Al Weiss, president of Worldwide Operations for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. He replaces Ed Grier, who is retiring from the company.

“George is a proven strategic thinker whose operational expertise and strong leadership skills will serve him well in leading the Disneyland Resort,” said Weiss. “We are excited to welcome him back to California and look forward to his leadership as we continue to expand and grow this beloved place.”

From 2000 to 2002, Kalogridis served as senior vice president of Resort Operations for the Disneyland Resort, where he played a significant role in the first expansion of the resort – the opening of Disney’s California Adventure park and Downtown Disney. In addition, he was responsible for the daily operations of both theme parks and three hotels, as well as Downtown Disney.

“I am thrilled to be returning to Disneyland, particularly during this exciting time of significant expansion,” said Kalogridis. “I look forward to working with the Cast who make the magic for our Guests everyday and partnering with the Orange County community to ensure the Anaheim Resort Area continues to thrive.”

Hand-painted and made of stone resin, this nearly-a-foot-tall sculpture of a haunted castle features ten Disney classics villains. Ursula, Scar, Hook, Tick-Tock the Croc, Cruella de Vil, Maleficent Dragon, the Evil/Wicked Queen, Shere Kahn, Jafar and Hades stand guard as motion activated light-up eyes and spooky sounds make this the Disney fan’s Halloween decor to have… for next year.

You can pre-order the item here for $135 with shipment expected first quarter of 2010.

With no formal date announced, Disney has shifted the release timeframe of the Vinylmation Cutesters (pictured left) from October until December. When a formal date is announced, we will post it as information becomes available to us.